Hi! I'm Chelle. Through Clean Eating and Exercise, I changed my life! I'm a real person, with a real life, I have a family, job, friends, and a passion for food & fitness. I've lost 80+ lbs, and kept them off for 8 years and I've competed in 2 Figure Competitions. Still battling injuries and arthritis, I'm proof YOU can do the impossible! Follow me and I'll show you how to live a life of health, balance, and goal achievement! Oh, and eat GREAT, too! ;-)

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Sunday, December 30, 2012

Not a Creature Was Stirring, Not Even a Mouse...

It's been a wonderful holiday for our family... full of family time, (clean eats - shhhhhh!), and special memories. Last night was the engagement party for our daughter Shiloh and her fiance, Jared. Thanks to the genius's at @partypeoplerentals we were all warm and cozy, cocooned in our own special world, despite the cold snap (hey, to us here in Scottsdale, 35 degrees is COLD!).

Party People Rentals really came through for us - we were a relatively last minute reservation - started out just being tables and chairs, but when the weather turned, they hooked me up with a tent and blow-heater. I wasn't sure what to expect, but it was perfect. Now, being me... I have to share the absolute craziness that went into this....

The delivery guys were scheduled to arrive at my father in law's house at 10:30 am on Friday. I was up bright and early, as usual, hit the gym for my leg workout (increased my weights again!), showered, worked, and headed over with Shiloh to be there when the guys arrived. Well, by 11:30, we learned that they were running behind (holiday, to be expected), so Shi and I headed to WalMart to finish up some last minute shopping, then back home where I kept plugging away at work. At 1pm I got the call, and we rushed back over... Let me preface this with I was harried and harrassed, and trying to not be stresssed.

We got there, the guys got to work (amazing to watch them get it all done!), and eventually, Gramma (she's 92) came out to chat...

"Did they find the body?" she asked.
"Body?" I responded.
"Yeah, did they find it? Was it a boy or a girl? Do they know how long it's been there?" she queried.
Shiloh and I were lost.
"What?" I asked.

"Yes, those men came to the door and told me they had to set up a tent for the body. Did they find it yet? Are you here to watch them dig it up?"

Now... remember, I was a tad stressed... I looked down at this sweet little woman and thought, "Really??? This is a very inconvenient time for you to lose your mind." (yes, I know, admitting this makes me look bad, but ya'll know I'm about transparency here, lol).

Shiloh's eyes are bugging out of her head, I'm about to lose MY mind, and then it hit me... body. party.. English not a first language. body / party. Yep, he told her they were there to set up the tent for the party. OMG. As Shi and I realized, we just started laughing, then had to explain to Gramma why we were laughing, then she started laughing. Eventually, we all regained our composure, the guys finished setting up, and as we waited for the barrels to fill (due to underground cables, we couldn't stake the tent, so they filled barrels with water to stabilize it), we enjoyed the relief of knowing it was nearly done. Gramma said she was going back inside where it was warmer, and "You know, I'm glad it was a tent for a party. That's much nicer than digging up a body in the back yard." I about peed myself! Love that lady! LOL! Gramma went inside. Shi and I relaxed, then we heard a funny noise.

The guys all looked at me. I looked at them. We all looked around, and then.... Poof! On came the sprinklers! AAARRRRGGGGHHHHH!!! Are you kidding me????? You should have seen us scrambling around trying to figure out how to turn them off! Oh my! It was certainly an adventure! But Party People came to the rescue again, and found the valve - got the sprinklers turned off. Whew!

The day of the party, the girls started with a bridesmaid breakfast, then we all met at the bridal salon. The gals had a blast trying on gowns. Once it was narrowed down to a couple choices, Shiloh put on her wedding gown to see how they looked together.

It was fun, and frivolous, and girly. The Mother of the Groom joined us for the occasion, and we all enjoyed every moment.

So many styles to choose from!

Aren't they gorgeous?

It's an exhausting process ;-) (I can show this because no details of her dress are visible - but I can tell you... It's GORGEOUS!! She looks like a princess in it!)

From there, most of us headed back to my father in law's home, where we finished the food prep, then the party began! Oh - and yes, I used many, many of my crockpots! ;-) And my family and I have agreed to not discuss (and I mean EVER) my experience with the little buffet thingy's and their gel fuel burners. Freagin' frackin' NOT user friendly. Thank goodness for Emu oil! Stupid little burns! Bah!

Here's a shot of the wedding party - Can you pick out the Marine's in the group? LOL! FYI, one of the girls is a Marine, too! We finally got the website up, www.JaredAndShiloh.com and we'll be adding info as it becomes available.

Tonight, the clean up is done. The kids are all tucked into their various beds, and Bill and I are catching up on Dexter while relaxing in the quiet of the evening. I gotta say - it's kinda nice ;-) It's peaceful, and I'm content. I'm grateful.

Thanks for sharing the joy with me! ;-)

It's been a wonderful holiday for our family... full of family time, (clean eats - shhhhhh!), and special memories. Last night was the engagement party for our daughter Shiloh and her fiance, Jared. Thanks to the genius's at @partypeoplerentals we were all warm and cozy, cocooned in our own special world, despite the cold snap (hey, to us here in Scottsdale, 35 degrees is COLD!).

Party People Rentals really came through for us - we were a relatively last minute reservation - started out just being tables and chairs, but when the weather turned, they hooked me up with a tent and blow-heater. I wasn't sure what to expect, but it was perfect. Now, being me... I have to share the absolute craziness that went into this....

The delivery guys were scheduled to arrive at my father in law's house at 10:30 am on Friday. I was up bright and early, as usual, hit the gym for my leg workout (increased my weights again!), showered, worked, and headed over with Shiloh to be there when the guys arrived. Well, by 11:30, we learned that they were running behind (holiday, to be expected), so Shi and I headed to WalMart to finish up some last minute shopping, then back home where I kept plugging away at work. At 1pm I got the call, and we rushed back over... Let me preface this with I was harried and harrassed, and trying to not be stresssed.

We got there, the guys got to work (amazing to watch them get it all done!), and eventually, Gramma (she's 92) came out to chat...

"Did they find the body?" she asked.
"Body?" I responded.
"Yeah, did they find it? Was it a boy or a girl? Do they know how long it's been there?" she queried.
Shiloh and I were lost.
"What?" I asked.

"Yes, those men came to the door and told me they had to set up a tent for the body. Did they find it yet? Are you here to watch them dig it up?"

Now... remember, I was a tad stressed... I looked down at this sweet little woman and thought, "Really??? This is a very inconvenient time for you to lose your mind." (yes, I know, admitting this makes me look bad, but ya'll know I'm about transparency here, lol).

Shiloh's eyes are bugging out of her head, I'm about to lose MY mind, and then it hit me... body. party.. English not a first language. body / party. Yep, he told her they were there to set up the tent for the party. OMG. As Shi and I realized, we just started laughing, then had to explain to Gramma why we were laughing, then she started laughing. Eventually, we all regained our composure, the guys finished setting up, and as we waited for the barrels to fill (due to underground cables, we couldn't stake the tent, so they filled barrels with water to stabilize it), we enjoyed the relief of knowing it was nearly done. Gramma said she was going back inside where it was warmer, and "You know, I'm glad it was a tent for a party. That's much nicer than digging up a body in the back yard." I about peed myself! Love that lady! LOL! Gramma went inside. Shi and I relaxed, then we heard a funny noise.

The guys all looked at me. I looked at them. We all looked around, and then.... Poof! On came the sprinklers! AAARRRRGGGGHHHHH!!! Are you kidding me????? You should have seen us scrambling around trying to figure out how to turn them off! Oh my! It was certainly an adventure! But Party People came to the rescue again, and found the valve - got the sprinklers turned off. Whew!

The day of the party, the girls started with a bridesmaid breakfast, then we all met at the bridal salon. The gals had a blast trying on gowns. Once it was narrowed down to a couple choices, Shiloh put on her wedding gown to see how they looked together.

It was fun, and frivolous, and girly. The Mother of the Groom joined us for the occasion, and we all enjoyed every moment.

So many styles to choose from!

Aren't they gorgeous?

It's an exhausting process ;-) (I can show this because no details of her dress are visible - but I can tell you... It's GORGEOUS!! She looks like a princess in it!)

From there, most of us headed back to my father in law's home, where we finished the food prep, then the party began! Oh - and yes, I used many, many of my crockpots! ;-) And my family and I have agreed to not discuss (and I mean EVER) my experience with the little buffet thingy's and their gel fuel burners. Freagin' frackin' NOT user friendly. Thank goodness for Emu oil! Stupid little burns! Bah!

Here's a shot of the wedding party - Can you pick out the Marine's in the group? LOL! FYI, one of the girls is a Marine, too! We finally got the website up, www.JaredAndShiloh.com and we'll be adding info as it becomes available.

Tonight, the clean up is done. The kids are all tucked into their various beds, and Bill and I are catching up on Dexter while relaxing in the quiet of the evening. I gotta say - it's kinda nice ;-) It's peaceful, and I'm content. I'm grateful.

Thanks for sharing the joy with me! ;-)

It's been a wonderful holiday for our family... full of family time, (clean eats - shhhhhh!), and special memories. Last night was the engagement party for our daughter Shiloh and her fiance, Jared. Thanks to the genius's at @partypeoplerentals we were all warm and cozy, cocooned in our own special world, despite the cold snap (hey, to us here in Scottsdale, 35 degrees is COLD!).

Party People Rentals really came through for us - we were a relatively last minute reservation - started out just being tables and chairs, but when the weather turned, they hooked me up with a tent and blow-heater. I wasn't sure what to expect, but it was perfect. Now, being me... I have to share the absolute craziness that went into this....

The delivery guys were scheduled to arrive at my father in law's house at 10:30 am on Friday. I was up bright and early, as usual, hit the gym for my leg workout (increased my weights again!), showered, worked, and headed over with Shiloh to be there when the guys arrived. Well, by 11:30, we learned that they were running behind (holiday, to be expected), so Shi and I headed to WalMart to finish up some last minute shopping, then back home where I kept plugging away at work. At 1pm I got the call, and we rushed back over... Let me preface this with I was harried and harrassed, and trying to not be stresssed.

We got there, the guys got to work (amazing to watch them get it all done!), and eventually, Gramma (she's 92) came out to chat...

"Did they find the body?" she asked.
"Body?" I responded.
"Yeah, did they find it? Was it a boy or a girl? Do they know how long it's been there?" she queried.
Shiloh and I were lost.
"What?" I asked.

"Yes, those men came to the door and told me they had to set up a tent for the body. Did they find it yet? Are you here to watch them dig it up?"

Now... remember, I was a tad stressed... I looked down at this sweet little woman and thought, "Really??? This is a very inconvenient time for you to lose your mind." (yes, I know, admitting this makes me look bad, but ya'll know I'm about transparency here, lol).

Shiloh's eyes are bugging out of her head, I'm about to lose MY mind, and then it hit me... body. party.. English not a first language. body / party. Yep, he told her they were there to set up the tent for the party. OMG. As Shi and I realized, we just started laughing, then had to explain to Gramma why we were laughing, then she started laughing. Eventually, we all regained our composure, the guys finished setting up, and as we waited for the barrels to fill (due to underground cables, we couldn't stake the tent, so they filled barrels with water to stabilize it), we enjoyed the relief of knowing it was nearly done. Gramma said she was going back inside where it was warmer, and "You know, I'm glad it was a tent for a party. That's much nicer than digging up a body in the back yard." I about peed myself! Love that lady! LOL! Gramma went inside. Shi and I relaxed, then we heard a funny noise.

The guys all looked at me. I looked at them. We all looked around, and then.... Poof! On came the sprinklers! AAARRRRGGGGHHHHH!!! Are you kidding me????? You should have seen us scrambling around trying to figure out how to turn them off! Oh my! It was certainly an adventure! But Party People came to the rescue again, and found the valve - got the sprinklers turned off. Whew!

The day of the party, the girls started with a bridesmaid breakfast, then we all met at the bridal salon. The gals had a blast trying on gowns. Once it was narrowed down to a couple choices, Shiloh put on her wedding gown to see how they looked together.

It was fun, and frivolous, and girly. The Mother of the Groom joined us for the occasion, and we all enjoyed every moment.

So many styles to choose from!

Aren't they gorgeous?

It's an exhausting process ;-) (I can show this because no details of her dress are visible - but I can tell you... It's GORGEOUS!! She looks like a princess in it!)

From there, most of us headed back to my father in law's home, where we finished the food prep, then the party began! Oh - and yes, I used many, many of my crockpots! ;-) And my family and I have agreed to not discuss (and I mean EVER) my experience with the little buffet thingy's and their gel fuel burners. Freagin' frackin' NOT user friendly. Thank goodness for Emu oil! Stupid little burns! Bah!

Here's a shot of the wedding party - Can you pick out the Marine's in the group? LOL! FYI, one of the girls is a Marine, too! We finally got the website up, www.JaredAndShiloh.com and we'll be adding info as it becomes available.

Tonight, the clean up is done. The kids are all tucked into their various beds, and Bill and I are catching up on Dexter while relaxing in the quiet of the evening. I gotta say - it's kinda nice ;-) It's peaceful, and I'm content. I'm grateful.